Page 47 of Wine, Whiskey, & Lipstick 2

Chapter 20

Ben had left early. His warm lips tenderly touched Dillyn’s before he slipped out the door. She figured he was going to ride Whisper to gain some clarity about how to handle her decision. It was probably best that Dillyn pretended to be asleep. Most likely, it prevented an argument. There was no doubt Ben would have tried to convince her to stay away from the breadcrumbs she had found. It would have been a pointless discussion.

Dillyn’s mind was made up.

Shortly after Ben left, Dillyn threw on a pair of sweats, got out of bed, walked over to her computer, and powered it on. Dillyn plugged her laptop into the computer as a backup to record her work. Then she set about the painstaking work of tracing the cyber attacker’s movements. As the hours passed, darkness morphed into early morning light, and Dillyn began to feel a dull ache in her lower back.

How long have I been sitting in this same position?Hours.She stretched, hoping it would give her some relief, only for Dillyn to need to use the bathroom.

I’ll go in a minute.It was a refrain Dillyn repeated over and over. Every time she glanced at her computer's lower right corner, an hour passed. The lack of sleep and the stress of trying to find any possible clues began to weigh on her.

Dillyn rolled her shoulders back and massaged them to remove the tension.

What she was attempting required the precision of a surgeon. One wrong keystroke could destroy everything and tip off her intruders. Dillyn was making progress and, fortunately, had captured most of what the hacker left behind in her network. At least, she hoped so.

After a meticulously slow process, Dillyn finally made it to the metaphorical front door of the enemy. Getting inside would require even more focus. Her cell phone vibrated just as she was about to follow her next breadcrumb.

Dillyn glanced down to find that Syntax had sent her a text. She groaned, “Ugh.” His timing was unnerving. Dillyn wondered if he knew what she was doing. She wouldn’t have been surprised if he did. The man new everything and seemed to be at least two steps ahead. Dillyn could only read the top-line of his message.

Syntax:Need to connect ASAP!

Dillyn texted back:Can’t talk.

Syntax:Explain?!

Dillyn:In the middle of a job. Will connect when finished.

Syntax:IMPORTANT!!

Technically, Dillyn was in the perfect place to stop. She hadn’t actually entered the enemy’s domain. The clock would only start ticking once she was inside their network. Still, Dillyn didn’t want to tip Syntax off if he didn’t already know what she was up to. She decided to text him a little white lie.

Dillyn:In sensitive place. Can it wait an hour or two?

Syntax:IMMEDIATELY after.

Dillyn:Will do.

Her stomach was in knots.Get it together.Dillyn didn’t have time to allow Syntax to fluster her.What could he possibly do?A lot.What would he do?Give her grace . . .maybe.

Just as she was about to enter the unknown, Dillyn’s stomach growled, and it dawned on her that she was starving. The sound was so loud that Dillyn thought anyone from anywhere could hear it.

Hunched over her desk while leaning into the screen, her hunger pangs would not be denied. Not when her stomach felt like it was caving into her back.

Dillyn didn’t want to stop, but Ben’s words echoed inside her head.Someone else is depending on you. I’m depending on you.

Ugh!Dillyn typed a few codes into the keyboard to save her place and begrudgingly got up. She would grab something quick and then get back to work. What happened to the days when she could pull an all-nighter and things like food and a bio break could be controlled? Father time had a way of reminding her that she wasn’t twenty-two anymore.

Dillyn placed a hand over her stomach as she dragged herself down the stairs and into the kitchen.

As usual, Cat was already there with her head bowed over a mess of papers. She seemed to have a sixth sense that Dillyn was about to enter because she immediately glanced up. Cat lowered her reading glasses to the tip of her nose and looked over the top to study Dillyn. “I get it. We’re dealing with a crazy amount of shit, and you and Ben are still in the honeymoon phase, but why is your hair all over your head?” She was only half-joking as she cracked a sly grin, “Slip that bonnet on after he falls asleep.”

Self-consciously, Dillyn smoothed down her wayward curls. “That sounds like something Palmer would say.”I need food and coffee.“Anyway, Ben has seen the real me. The good, bad, and ugly. I’m now awhat you see is what you getkind of woman.”

Cat pushed her glasses back up onto the bridge of her nose. “Truth is, Ben didn’t fare much better than you when I saw him leave this morning. Dude looked just as worn out.” Cat laughed quietly. “Even with a crisis, you two know that a bed can also be used for sleeping, right?”

Dillyn was surprised that A, Cat had been up that early, and B, her demeanor. “I see you can still make jokes.”

She shrugged, “beats the alternative.”

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